Mechanism for use in shaping shoe uppers



V M. BRO'CK. MECHANISM FOR USE IN SHAPING SHOE UPPERS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2. 1917- Patented Feb. 21, 1922.

MATTE-HAS BROOK, or BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, assienon, BY ransivn' ASSIGN- MENTS, T0 "UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, F yATERSQN, NEW JERSEY, a CORPORATION or new zrnasnr. v V

MECHANISM non use 1N srrarr'ive snoii UPPERS.

Specification of Letters latentfi Patgn ted 21 Application filed. February 2, 1917. Serial No. 146,249.

T 0 all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that'I, Marianas BROOK, a

citizen of the United States, residingat Boston, inthe county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Mechanism for Use in Shaping Shoe Uppers, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characterson the drawings indicating,

like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to shoemaking and particularly the shaping of the upper ma terials including the removal of surplus stock from the margin of such materials.

, \Vhen, in the earlier development of shoemaking machinery, it was customary to pull over shoes by hand, it was found expedient to prepare the upper for the pulling over and lasting operation by .pinking or notching the toe end of the vamp, as explained'in a patent granted to myself andE. Vfoodward, Jan. 21, 1879, No. 211,612, so that when the margin of the vamp was gathered-- inwardly over the toe of the insole it would lie comparatively smooth andthere would not be a surplus of upper material producing a bunch interfering with the proper laying of the outsole. With the introduction of the pulling-over machine, this preparation of the upper was found to be objectionable because it was found difiicult to present such a notched edge satisfactorily to the toe v pincer of the pulling-over machine, and

thereafter the notching of the upper was effected after the pulling-over operationby' the use of what is known as theCa-rter pinkino' tool built under Patent 591,999, Oct. 19,

1897. An alternative system was to form slits in the upper during the lasting opera- 1011, this system being used particularly in connection with the step-by-step lasting ma-' chines of the hand method type and permitting the upper to be pleated smoothly enough so that in light shoes it was unneces sary to trim off any stock. More recently the surplus material has been efficiently dealt with in a separate operation following the lasting in which the tread face ofthe toe portion of the lasted shoe is presented to a. rotary cutter which trims or grinds away the surplus material leaving a smooth seat'upon which to lay the outsole. In the search for economies in the shoe manufacturing proc esses to offset the increase of costs of materials, there has arisen a demand for the elimination ofv this separate toe grinding or trimming operation with the additional l1aI1-' dling of the shoe which it involves, and simultaneously manufacturers are seeking to Tothi's end one 7' I i n a in the'combination with'means to gather the end portion of'an upper inwardly over a last i or equivalent shoe form and hold it in position to be trimmed, of trimming means con structed and arranged to co-operate in a comprising the usual toe lasting wipers operated to gather the upper over the ins'o 7O novel manner with said gathering means "to trim off the marginal edge portion of the as described and a cutter suitably shaped with relation to said wipers to trim off the surplus of upper projecting yond the wipers, the trimming means herein shown being constructed and arranged to inwardly beassume an operative position at the rear of the toe end of the shoe and V to be operated independently of the wipers.

In theillustrated emboeimentof the invention the cut-.'

ter is oftlie chisel type arranged to operate substantially perpendicularly to the" plane of the insole to trim off the marginal edge-of the upper held in an inwardly projectingposit-ion by the gatheringmeans, although it is within this nvention, in some of its aspects, to employa cutter of any suitable type or shape arranged to operate efliciently for the purpose.

Another feature of this invention consists in a novel construction and arrangement of cutter and co-operating means for severing the marginal edge of the upper, the con struction shown comprising a member having an edge contour adapting it to the toe of a shoe, said member being of appropriate thickness to enter between the toe portion of an insole and the overlying portion of the upper material gathered over the shoe bottom, and a cutter adapted to co-operate with said member to sever the surplus stock from v by the hand of he operator.

the upper. This feature is herein shown as embodied in a relatively stationary plate shaped to be inserted between the insole and the margin of the overwiped upper in combination with a cutter shaped and arranged to co-operate with said plate in effecting a shearing out.

Other features of the invention consist in a novel construction and arrangement of cutter and means for determining its relation to the shoe for the proper performance of. its function. and in various details of construction and combinations of parts, all of which will be more fully understood from the following description of the illustrative embodiment of the i vention shown in the accompanying drawings. I

Fig. l of the drawings is a perspective view showing toe wipers and co-operating upper trimming means in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the trimming means showing it in position for use.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the trimming means.

The toe lasting mechanism may be constructed and arranged substantially as shown in my co-pending application Ser. No. 124 187, filed Oct. 6, 1916, upon which Letters Patent No. 1,390,755 were granted on Sept. 1.8, 1921. ing mechanism is not essential here further than to point out that it comprises a toe rest 2 upon which the forepart of the shoe is sup ported, toe embracing wipers 4- connected through a plunger witha hand lever 5 by means of which the wipers are advanced. The wipers are guided by suitable cam tracks to cause them to close when they are advanced and thereby to gather the toe portion of the upper inwardly over the toe of the shoe insole and hold the upper in position for the action of the trimmer in removing the surplus of the upper extending inside of the tacking line and tending to produce a bunch upon the bottom of the lasted shoe.

The illustrated embodiment of the trimming mechanism comprises a bar or stem 8 adapted to extend perpendicularly to the plane of the shoe bottom and provided on its lower end with a foot or base member 10 comprising a plate or flange having an edge contour adapting it to the toe of the shoe. said flange being of suitable thickness to be inserted between the face of the insole and the marginal portion of the upper which has been gathered over the toe of the insole by the wipers. Carried and movable endwise on the stem 8 is a sleeve 12 the upper portion of which is formed to adapt it to be grasped T he sleeve carries a knife 15 here shown as circular in form and of the chisel type and having an edge contour adapted to co pc ate with the A detailed description of the lastfoot or flange 10 in effecting a shearing cut through the upper materials toremove the surplus upper stock. The active shearing edges of the illustrated foot and knife are curved and have a contour that will shear off the surplus stock along a line appro ;i mating the contour of the adjacent edge of the sole. The cutter is shown as extending entirely around the sleeve so that in its operation it will entirely disconnect from the up per the trimming or piece of surplus material which it severs from the upper. The cutter 15 is shown as fastened to the sleeve by removable screws permitting its replacement, and movements of the cutter relatively to the stem 8 are limited by means of a cross pin 16 carried by the sleeve and extending through a slot 18 in the stem, thereby insuring against damage to the insole in tl e cutting operation. A cutter lifting spring 20 is located in a recess in the stem and acts upwardly against an adjustable stud 22 carried by the sleeve. The sleeve is enlarged at its upper end to present a head adapted to be engaged by a suitable striking implement such as 25, if desired, to force the knife through thick upper material. If the upper material does not offer too much resistance, the knife can be forced through it by pressure transmitted through that hand of the operator which grasps the sleeve.

A manner of using this invention which has been found satisfactory is to positionthe shoe upon the toe rest and clamp it by means of the usual hold-down of the lasting machine, and then employ the wipers for. shaping the upper around the end of the toe and for then gathering the upper inwardly over the bottom face of the insole.

operator advances and retracts the wipers several times until he has the upper positioned correctly and formed satisfactorily without wrinkles which will show in the surfaces that are exposed to view when the shoe is completed. i He then backs thewipers partially off the toe to uncover the tacking line and inserts the foot 10 between the insole and the overwipedupper materials as s iown in Fig. 2, positioning the foot so that just the portion of upper which is superfluous will be trimmed off. This, of course, varies in difierent shoes and the possibility of positioning the cutter for each shoe in accordance with the operators judgment is advan tageous. The foot having been properly located, the operator presses d wn the cutter into engagement with the upper and if the upper material is thick he strikes the head of the knife carrying sleeve with the tool shown in Fig. l to drive the cutter through the stock. he wip 7s hold the stock in poition to be cut and guide the operatorin correctly cutting it. The foot 10 and the Usually v knife co-operate in making a clear, clean out entirely through the upper materials witlu'iut injuring the insole. The shape of the cutter insures that the surplus material will be en- I have also contemplated the use of the toe trimmer on a shoe after the lasting and toe fastenmghas been completed weather-the shoe is held in the lasting machine or other Wise supported for the purpose. its I am now advised the best results are obtained.

however b followin the uoccdure first" above outlined and trimming off the surplus upper material after the upper has been shaped to and wiped over the toe and while it is held by the wipers prior to. the insertion of the lasting tacks. It will be understood that by the use of this invention the separate toe trimming operation is wholly eliminated thus saving the factory space and equipment involved in the use of a separate toe trimming machine and that the trimming operation can be effected before the lasting eon pleted, thereby getting the surplus upper-material out of the way of the lasting instrumentalities during the final portion of the lasting operation and prior to the toe tacking operation. This latter isv important in that it enables'the lasting to be more smoothly effected upon the bottomof the toe, and the removal of the surplus material before the tacking permits the upper to be more compactly tacked to the insole than is practicable before the surplus material has been cut away. There is also the further advantage that the lasted and fastened condition of the toe is not disturbed by a subsequent trimming operation, more or less of such disturbance being inevitable when the upper was trimmed after the lasting and tacking had been completed. v

Vfhile the invention is herein illustrated V and described with reference particularly to trimming off the surplus margin of the upper at the toe. end of a shoe, it is not intended thereby to imply any limitation with respect to such features of the invention as are clearly of utility irrespective of the particular portion of the shoe upon which the trimming operation is performed.

Having explainedthe nature of this invention and described a preferred embodiment thereof, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the Jnited States 1. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a member having a curved edge adapting it to the toe of a shoe and a thickness to en-' f tcr between the toe portionof an insole and the overlyingportion of'a shoe upper, and a cutter havinga curved edge adaptedtocooperate with said member to sever the su-r-' P t ck from e. ppe

, 2. In meansfor removing; surplusupper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a member-having an edge contour approximating that of the toe of a, shoe and a thickness, "to enterbetween the, toe portion of an insole and the overlying portion of a shoe upper, and a cutter guided in co-operative relation to saidedge contour" to shear ofl' surplus, upper on a-line determined by.

the edge contour of said member.

3. In meansfor removing surplus upper stock from the toesof shoes, the combination of a member having an edge 'contour'adapting it to'the toe ofashoe and athickness to enter between the toe portion of; an insole and the overlying portion of a shoe-upper,

a stem by the aid of which said member may be placed in working position, and a cutter, guided for movement longitudinallyof'said stem to shear the upper along the edge con-5 toun'of said member,

4. In means for removing: surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a member having anedge contour adapt- ;ing it to'the toe of a shoe and athicknessto enter between the toe portion of an insole and the overlying portion ofa shoe upper, a

stem by the aid of which said member may be placed in working position, a sleeve slid,- ing onsaid stem and adapted to be grasped by the hand of a workman, a cutter carried by the sleeve to co-operate with the edge of said member, and a spring for holding the cutter normally upraised .to facilitate introduction of said member under the portion of upper to be cut. 7

In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a stem having a foot to be inserted under the overbent upper at the toe of a shoe, a

shear knife guided by'the stem to-co-operate with the foot in trimming the upper, means for raising the knife, and means adapted to receive motion forimpelling the knife toward the foot and through the upper.

'6. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a vcutting. plate having a curved edge approximating the curveat the toeend of a shoe sole, said plate being shaped and arranged to be positioned under the overbent toe portion of a partially lasted upper, and

a shearing cutter mounted for movement in relation to saidedge to cut the upper on the line of said edge.

7. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, thecombination of a sleeve carrying a toe trimming cutter, and a stem lengthwise of-wlnch the sleeve is guided for endwise' movement and which is adapted to be engaged with .;the shoe in-- sole in proximity to the upper to guide the cutter into desired cutting relation to the upper.

8. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a sleeve carrying a toe trimming cutter,

and a stem on which the sleeve is guided for endwise movement and which is adapted to be engaged with the shoe insole in proximity to the upper to guide the cutter into desired cutting relation to the upper, said cutter sleeve having a portion shaped to be grasped by the hand of the workman :tor eitecting operation of the cutter. 9. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination of a sleeve carrying a toe trimming cutter, a stem on which the sleeve is guided for endwise movement and which is adapted to be engaged with the shoe insole in proximity to the upper to guide the cutter into desired cutting relation to the upper, and a spring for raising the cutter, said cutter sleeve having a portion adapted to be engaged by a driver to impel the cutter through the upper. 10. In 'mechanism for use in shaping shoeuppers, the combination with means for gathering and working inwardly over the bottom of a shoe form the margin of that portion of an upper which extends round the end of the form and for holding the margin of the upper in position to permit its surplus edge portion to be trimmed oil, of trimming means comprising co-operating "members constructed and arranged to receive between them the edge portion of said margin while it is held by the gathering means and to separate said edge portion from the remainder of the upperstock by a cut extending lengthwise of the edge.

11. In mechanism for use in shaping shoe uppers, the combination with means for gathering and working inwardly over the bottom of a shoe form the margin of that portion of an upper which extends round the end oi the form and for holding the margin of the upper in position to permit its surplus edge portion to be trimmed off, of trimming means constructed and arranged for operative movement independently of said gathering means while the margin of the upper is held by the gatheringmeans to trim the edge portion of the upper by a cut extending continuously along the margin from one side to the other of the gatherer material.

12. In mechanism for use in shaping shoe uppers, the combination with means for gathering and bending inwardly over the bottom of a shoe form the margin of that portion of an upper which extends round the end of the form and for holding the margin of the upper in its inwardly projecting condition, ot trimming means comprising a movable cutter and a positioning device constructcd and arranged to position the cutter in such relation to the shoe while the upper is held by said gathering means as to render the cutter effective to trim off the entire surplus edge portion of the inwardly projecting margin of the upper round the end of the shoe by movement in a direction transverse to the plane of the shoe bottom.

13. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes the combination oi a plate adapted to extend under the overwiped upper at the toe of a shoe, a cutter movable toward and from said plate to trim oil surplus upper, and means to support the shoe against the impact of the cutter.

14:. in means for removing surplus upper stock from the toes of shoes, the combination 'movable along said stem toward the insole tructed to trim off at one operation e surplus margin of the upper to be and co s the entir removed at the toe end oi the shoe, said cut-' ter and stem being relatively spaced to receive between them at the end or the cutting operation the surplus upper material trimmed of". and a sleeve encircling said stem to be grasped by the operators hand in placing the cutter.

15. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the ends of shoes, a cutting mem ber arranged to be sustained above the marginal portion of a shoe upper held to the marginal end portion of a shoe sole and mounted for movement toward said sole to sever surplus upper stock, said cutting member being formed to out off surplus upper stock inwardly o1 the line along which said stock is held to the sole and along a curved line approximating the contour of the adjacentedge of the sole.

16. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the ends of shoes, the combination of a base member adapted for insertion between the end portion of a shoe sole and the overlying portion of an upper held to the margin of said end of the sole, and cooperating cutting member arranged to be sustained above said overlying portion of the upper and said base member and mounted for movement toward said overlying portion and base member to sever surplus up per stock, said cutting member being formed to cut off surplus upper stock along a curved line approximating the contour of the adjacent edge of the shoe sole.

17 In mechanism for use in shaping shoe uppers, the combination with end embracing wipers for gathering and wiping inwardly over the bottom of a shoe form the margin of that portion of an upper which extends round the end of the forum of trimming means constructed and arranged to be. positioned at the rear of the toe end or" the shoe beyond the inner edges of said wipers while the Wipers hold the upper in overwiped condition and to trim off the projecting edge portion of the margin of the upper by a cut extending round the end of the shoe from one side to the other. v

18. In upper trimming means, the combination of a cutter adapted to be positioned manually lengthwise of a shoe and having a cutting edge adapted to trim of! the marginal edge of a shoe upper by a cut extend ing continuously: round the end of the shoe from one side to the other while the margin of the upper is held in overlaid position on the shoe bottom, and means for engaging the insole of the shoe to position said cutter relatively to the edge of the upper.

19. In upper trimming means, the combination of a cutter having a cutting edge adapted to trim off the inarginal'edge of a shoe upper by a continuous cut extending round the end of the shoe from one side to the other While the margin of the upper is held in overlaid position on the shoe bottom, and means constructed and arranged to project between the insole of the shoe and the overlaid margin of the upper and to po sition the cutter for operative movement in a direction transverse to the plane of the. insole.

20. In means for removing surplus upper stock from the ends of shoes, the combination of an upper trimming cutter, a sleeve arranged to be grasped by the hand of the operator to control the operation of the cutter, and a stem extending lengthwise Within said sleeve with one end having an outwardly projecting flange constructed for engagement With the insole of the shoe under the margin of the upper to position the cutter relatively to the stock to be trimmed.

21. In mechanism for removing the sur- 7 plus margin of an upper held in gathered position by end embracingivipers, a cutter 7 having a cutting edge adapted to extend continuously along the gathered margin of the upper from one side portion of the shoe bottom to the other side portion and to sever the entire surplus margin of the upper at the end of the shoe at one operation, and'a support for said cutter arranged to extend beneath the edge of the upper and manually movable to permit the cutter to be positioned inside or the inner edges of the wipers premember having co-ope'rating edges arranged to extend continuously along the margin of the upper round the end of the shoe from one side portion of the shoe bottom to the other side portion and to sever the entire surplus margin of the upper at the end of'the' shoe at one operation. 7

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

MATTHIAS BROOK. 

